@Lane Anderson posted:

I have to share with y'all (a southerism meaning "all of you" ) some of the response I've gotten to this car at the four car shows (Carlisle, two local Cars & Coffee, local Ale and Octane) I've attended so far.  The reception has been amazing. @chines1, I hope you realize the hit you have with this car.  I've had elderly folk (meaning slightly older than me) who owned 356s back in the day, current Porsche owners, and pretty much everyone else tell me that it's one of the most beautiful cars they've ever seen.  They are amazed at how it looks, how it captures the best of the 356, and how it includes modern engineering.  I'll take some credit for the color and design choices as apparently everybody loves Oslo blue with cognac leather, but the overall theme has really hit the target.  Carey, please let Chuck know just how on target this is. It's interesting how many people recognize the Beck name.

I posted some pictures yesterday on an international Speedster/Coupe replica site and already have nearly 450 likes and nearly 90 comments.  I have a friend (Jim) who has built high end hot rods and even an aluminum bodied sports car that is a cross between an Aston Martin DB3S and a late 50s Ferrari sports racer.  He fell in love and tells me he wants one.  He's also offered his time and his shop to help me with the final sorting.  A mutual friend told me that Jim told him that my car was "f*cking gorgeous!"  That is high praise from someone who builds six-figure passion-mobiles.

I'm not saying this to brag.  Instead I want to express how lucky I feel I am.  It was a long wait and I almost bailed at a couple of points, but it was worth it.  This has been a fun, occasionally frustrating, but ultimately rewarding adventure.

I've got some sorting to do, which will make me feel more involved/invested in the whole project, which is important to me.  I think most of us on this site want to have a personal investment in the car, otherwise it's just a car, regardless of how well it performs.

Happy 4th, y'all!

I can’t remember if Carey mentioned the Coupe project to me when I dropped in to have them give my Spyder the once over before I drove it back to New York, or a couple years later when I dropped it off to have them do some mods for me, but every since I heard about it I thought this was going to take Chuck and SE to the next level.

IMO, this is way more significant than another replica. This is up on the Plastic Car Olympus with dropping a V8 in a Devin, or a Lister, or Chevy commissioning the Cheetah to compete with Ford’s Cobra.
I hope they can make enough of them to fill the demand. I think in 20-30 years they’re going to be legendary.

One of the most amazing things is how normal it seems to drive without losing the raw character that brought many of us to these cars.  The ride is comfortable but the handling feels like a serious track car.  Responses are right now, brakes are strong, and the power is addictive.  And yet if it's a bit warm you raise the windows (power, of course) and flip on the A/C.  I even figured out how to set the display colors for the stereo.

Is part of the "track car" feel, the tires????

I only ask because I got two of my four tires delivered yesterday. Thanks again Carey.

BTW, does the blue stripe on the tread go to the outside of the tire? That's what it looks like to me.

Can't wait to see your car in the Fall.

I just checked and there are no blue stripes on my tires.  I do know that the fancy looking side that says "Giugiaro Design" is on the outside.

See it?  Hell, you're gonna drive it.

@Lane Anderson wrote: "I even figured out how to set the display colors for the stereo."

Decadent, Mr. Anderson.  

Very Decadent, indeed.

But I can have flying jet fighters or Jumping Dolphins or crashing surf waves or L/R VU meters on my radio, so I'm not jealous (much).  

(Of course, the only color is a light blue, so I'm still jealous).

Stereo?  I have stereo tail pipes, and that's all I need.

Tune in to 993FM for the best sound around.

@Bob: IM S6 posted:

Stereo?  I have stereo tail pipes, and that's all I need.

Tune in to 993FM for the best sound around.

Poppycock. Hey Lane, Bob's car is GREEN with envy LOL!

P.S.: Bob, I love your car too.

Mid engine has to be a difference Lane !  Enjoy it you’ll be back for the turbo version next.

@DannyP posted:

Poppycock. Hey Lane, Bob's car is GREEN with envy LOL!

P.S.: Bob, I love your car too.

Ha.  Lane's new coupe is uber beautiful, and I look forward to seeing it 'in the flesh'.

He's a happy guy, and we all are happy for him.

So @Bob: IM S6, what's the latest on them opening up the border so you can join us in a couple of months?

@Carlos G posted:

BTW, does the blue stripe on the tread go to the outside of the tire? That's what it looks like to me.

AFAIK, they’re asymmetrical so they should be marked.

Might not be that prominent, but should be clearly marked.

My directional Contis just have three chevrons pointed in the direction of rotation.

Spotify and ear buds for me!  Its the only way I can hear the phone ring

@sethsaccocio posted:

Spotify and ear buds for me!  Its the only way I can hear the phone ring

i never answer the phone, its all robocalls even though our numbers unlisted...i even have the ringer turned off, just look for the flashing lite...they never lv msg.

@barncobob posted:

i never answer the phone, its all robocalls even though our numbers unlisted...i even have the ringer turned off, just look for the flashing lite...they never lv msg.

When I got a new phone it had updated security options. One was to send any call from someone that wasn’t in your contacts go directly to voicemail.
I go in and clean out all the extended warranty, the IRS is seizing your bank account, and SS has canceled your payment calls once a week.

@Lane Anderson posted:

So @Bob: IM S6, what's the latest on them opening up the border so you can join us in a couple of months?

My cynical self tells me it will be just around the time a federal election will be called.  Our federal government is making more and more noises about opening up, etc.

When the election is, is yet to be determined, but this Fall sometime.

Wait and see is all we can do...our vaccine numbers are getting better, in terms of those who are fully dosed (X2).

I hope y'all can make it.

Mike Lempert and I went out and did a little photo shoot yesterday.  Here are some of the highlights.  We should have gotten some rear shots but didn't think about it.  Ah well...

Nice Lane, nice wheel, very space ship looking

I love, love, love that wheel.  Very classy in a Bad-Ass, Bespoke kind of way.

Not space ship looking, though.  At least not for "Spaceman Spiff" (HE has a yoke!)

@Gordon Nichols posted:

I love, love, love that wheel.  Very classy in a Bad-Ass, Bespoke kind of way.

Not space ship looking, though.  At least not for "Spaceman Spiff" (HE has a yoke!)

I have to admit, when I first saw the drawings, I wasn’t in love. (Get off my lawn syndrome, I suppose)

But seeing it now it looks like a great idea for gauge visibility. I have to do a little “jog right” to see my whole Speedo.

Beautiful Lane. You should be so proud. The replica equivalent of the Medici’s commissioning Leonardo.

.

Gordon, that was Spiff's first  spaceship.

Red, open cockpit, and the rocket was in the back.

The damage was eventually repaired, and it's in the hands of another spaceman now.

.

i LUV the super coupe!!...what i HATE about it is ALL of our existing coupes have been rendered OBSOLETE for the time being! but i think i'll get over it...it's an awesome piece of rolling art

Yeah, I'm thinking' Carey has a hit here.  I've had several folks at C&C indicate that the were at least somewhat serious about getting one.  One (who buys and sells new 911s at least once a year) was shocked at how low the price is.  I wouldn't be surprised if the car sparks a few sales.  Hey @chines1, do I get a commission?

Wow, it's even smiling.
-=theron

@Sacto Mitch - So true on Spaceman Spiff’s ship.  Us Berkley Breathed (Bloom County) followers got a glimpse of Spiff’s last ship (25 years after the comic strip ended), just last week on BB’s Facebook page.  I can’t copy it here due to copyright stuff, but it’s worth a look to see the ship, the return of his long lost friend, Hobbs (sent from Opus and Milo in Bloom County) and the start of a whole new saga/series.

https://www.facebook.com/photo...et=a.261773351976858

Beautiful Car Lane !!     A nice little polished folding foot peg for your left foot would go well with the other pedals down there !...............Bruce

Already got a dead pedal, Bruce.  It just doesn't show in the picture.  Otherwise I'd be talking to ya.

Ok, the car is getting a clear bra and ceramic treatment in preparation of the Tour de Smo' in two weeks.  I am also all signed up for a BMW CCA HPDE (track day) at Carolina Motorsports Park (CMP) at the end of October.  The track has been resurfaced and I am told it is really nice.  We'll see how the Coupe (and its driver) does on a real track.

How was the track day? Impressions with the car?

Sorry - I haven't been updating this thread.  I had to cancel as I had to replace a bushing in the rear suspension and didn't get it done and realigned in time.  The realignment should be finalized (fingers crossed) in a couple of days.

At least your BMW is getting plenty of use.......    

@Gordon Nichols posted:

At least your BMW is getting plenty of use.......    

Now THAT'S funny!

I feel your pain, Lane, and hope that some day soon you'll get your car outa the shops for good.  It's all part of the "sorting out" process, for sure.

In May of 2020 I had to pull 1/3 of the dash apart to get the heater blower out of my Nissan (which gets parked outside near the woods).  I had to extricate a Mouse Condo from the squirrel cage blower.  The cage is about 5" deep and 7"-8" diameter:

The whole process took about 4-1/2 hours and required the entire pedal cluster and some heater ducting be removed for access.

About a month ago, I noticed the blower rumbling again so, once more I tore into the under-dash to find that the blower was, once again, about half-full of Condo Carpeting.  This time it took maybe 3 hours start to finish, AND my neighbor helped me fabricate some 1/2" mesh screens in the air intake snout to keep the little critters outside where they belong (you could see where they had gotten in through the air intake).

This past Saturday the blower started rumbling again, and this time I had it out in about an hour (I'm getting good at this) and it was about 1/4 full, so everything got vacuumed out for the third time.  All I could think was that the mouse is camped out inside of the car somewhere and getting in to the blower through the heating ducts.  So now I've got some mouse traps in all four footwells with good, stinky, Wensleydale cheese in them as bait.  Wallace and Grommit would approve, I'm sure.

This time, I got to use the new lift, just to get it up a bit so I could slide in and out of the driver's footwell easier on my back to reach, literally, to the top of the dash/heater on the driver's side to access the blower.  You''d think maybe they could have mounted it in the bottom where you could get at it easier, right?  I was actually surprised at how well that went, but I was still pretty stiff the next day.  

I ain't gettin' any younger, here....

1/2 inch mesh won't even slow a field mouse down. Go 1/8 inch or get ready to do it again.

Gordon:  I had to extricate a Mouse Condo from the squirrel cage blower"

Yesterday with gloves, a  mask and Walmart bags, I emptied the entire contents of the "Mouse Motor Inn",  the tunnel in a Beetle chassis it was packed from one end to the other with nesting material and 5 mummified occupants, sorta looked like the  "Saturday Short Stay Rate" and they forgot to leave.

The sorting list is pretty short:

• Alignment (see above, happening tomorrow)
• Improve stereo sound quality (not a common issue in Speedsters)
• Recalibrate gas gauge (when it first hits 'E' I have 10+ gallons left)
• Fix issue with wipers (they don't park anymore, but stop wherever they are when you turn them off)
• (optional) Route fresh air into frunk to better feed HVAC and improve ventilation in hot months (lower priority now that it's cooled off)

I have been chasing an annoying rattle that I fixed yesterday.  I took it for an after dark test drive to verify and was reminded just how nice it is to drive.  With the exception of the characteristically noisy heim joints in the suspension it is every bit as refined to drive as a current production sports car, and a lot more fun.  I love the subdued burbles and pops on deceleration - nothing obnoxious, but just enough.  Somehow being dark and not being able to see what you're driving made it easy to forget that you weren't in a modern car.

Lane.....I really like reading about your sorting saga ! For me it's one of the things I enjoy best about having cars like we all have ! The only frustrating thing for me is my age related inability to twist and bend like I used to.  I don't know how many gadgets and contraptions I have fabricated over the years just to be able to circumvent my lost capabilities !  The way I think says...." if I cease to try, it will get even worse"....... so there ya go...... my 3 cent wisdom for today !.................Bruce

"To sit - Is to ROT!"

@Gordon Nichols posted:

"To sit - Is to ROT!"

In Charleston it's:

"To sit - Is to RUST and MILDEW!"

Lane

Can you elaborate a bit on the rear suspension bushing problem. Was this a part defect or is it something that could be a recurrent problem?  Obviously I’ve ordered a car so this is a bit of a concern. Although I think my car, a Convertible D, will have a different rear suspension.
I lived through a chronic problem before where my intermeccanica with the VW water cooled engine would eat up CV boots.